Gilbert Johnson Purvis
Hinds County, Mississippi
Will Book 1, Page 48
I, Gilbert Johnson Purvis of the county and state aforesaid do make this as & for my last will and testament. In the first place as all of my property is now in dispute between myself & James P. J. Purvis and William Purvis and in consequence thereof I can make no specific bequests or legacies, it is my direction, will and desire that my executors herein after named shall forthwith and without delay proceed to ascertain & procure the portion of my father's estate the late Gilbert Purvis to which I am of right entitled. I claim all of the estate of which my mother was possessed at the time of her death---upon which property the said James P. J. Purvis has administered---For the negroes I have brought an action of replevie[1][?] in the circuit court of Hinds County. I wish my executors herein after mentioned to prosecute or abandon that suit as they may be advised by the counsel whom I have employed in this suit, Messrs. Marsh & Mayson---Should the said suit be abandoned or should my executors herein after named be cast therein there and in that case I hereby direct my Executors to file a bill in chancery or commence such other suit as may be necessary & proper to procure from the aforesaid James P. J. Purvis, administrator as aforesaid, the full distribution & share of the estate of my deceased parents to which I am entitled insisting upon the advance made by my deceased father the said Gilbert Purvis to James Purvis the father of the said James P. J Purvis in the lifetime of them both, and after my Executors shall have become possessor of the property to which I am entitled it is my will and desire that they divide the same after the payment of all my just debts equally share and share alike between all the children of James Purvis Senr. of Rankin except to Wright Barnes and Nancy his wife & James Brock & Betsey his wife formerly Nancy & Betsey Purvis to them I give and bequeath nothing---Provided however & it is my express will and direction that before any final distribution of my estate is made that my executors secure & secure effectually for my sister Sally Purvis, out of said estate the annual sum of one hundred & fifty dollars to be paid to her the said Sally for and during the term of her natural life, & to be paid at the end of each and every year. I do hereby nominate my friends and relatives John Purvis & William Purvis of Hinds County my executors to this my last will and testament revoking and annulling all others. Witness my hand and seal this 9th April 1835, Gilbert J. (x) Purvis. Witnesses William H. Young, Chas. C. Mayson. Proved 27 April 1835 by Charles C. Mayson.
I have studied this Will for many years and it is a very interesting. The first time I read this Will I was thoroughly confused. I was confused because this Will is just one piece of a huge puzzle with many pieces. This was a close knit family and you need all of the pieces to put it together. This puzzle is still being assembled today.
Before we talk about the other pieces let's examine this WILL. Gilbert Johnson Purvis was a SON of Gilbert Purvis and Efficia Howell.
Gilbert Purvis, Sr. is listed on the 1827 Tax Roll for Simpson County.
Gilbert died in Simpson County between 1827 and 1830. He is not listed on the 1830 US Population Census.
Efficia Howell Purvis died about August 1834
Gilbert Johnson Purvis died about Nov 1835
All this tragedy leads us to the Gilbert Johnson Will transcribed and posted above.
We see right off that Gilbert Johnson was having trouble disposing of and administering his parent estate
"all of my property is now in dispute between myself & James P. J. Purvis and William Purvis"
James P. J. Purvis and William Purvis are giving him problems. These two individuals are believed to be brothers and William is William H. H. Purvis. We know for certain that James P. J. Purvis is the son of James Purvis, the oldest son of Gilbert Purvis, So this James Purvis is a deceased brother of Gilbert Johnson Purvis.
"my deceased father the said Gilbert Purvis to James Purvis the father of the said James P. J Purvis in the lifetime of them both,"
This says nothing about a deceased James Purvis, so how do you know he is deceased. For the answer to this piece of the puzzle we have to go back to South Carolina before the Purvis brothers began their long trip westward.
In 1810 Census[2] for Chesterfield County, SC we have this listing:
James Purvis, Jr.
1 male, 16-26;
1 female, 16-26;
(Note: Jr. is used here to distinguish this James from his Uncle James Purvis)
This is James Purvis, son of Gilbert that is mentioned in the Will. We know from this Census that he was newly married.
Then in July 1818, just prior to the westward migration there an Administrative Bonds on file in Horry County, South Carolina.
Administrative Bond[3]
17 July 1818, John Johnston, Gilbert Purvis, admrs. of James _Purvis; Bond $10,000; Moses Harrelson, Felix Powell, sec. Richard _Singleton, Levi Moore, wit.
Excerpt from Administrative Bond
"…Seventeenth Day of July one thousand eight hundred and eighteen and in the 43rd year of America Independence. The condition of the above obligation is such that if the above bound John Johnston and Gilbert Purvis administrators of the goods, chattels and credits of James Purvis deceased…"
As stated above, it is my belief that James P. J. Purvis and William H. H. Purvis are brother and also sons of this deceased James Purvis.
The James Purvis, Sr. mentioned in the WILL is Gilbert Johnson Purvis Uncle and the Brother of Gilbert Purvis.
James F. Purvis, Sr. was born about 1760 and died Nov 1836 in Rankin County, Mississippi. This is another piece of the puzzle and you need James F. Purvis, Sr. Estate Records as clues for the puzzle.
This is the legacy left by Gilbert Johnson Purvis to his Uncle James F. Purvis children
"…children of James Purvis Senr. of Rankin except to Wright Barnes and Nancy his wife & James Brock & Betsey his wife formerly Nancy & Betsey Purvis to them I give and bequeath nothing…"
This is the legacy left by Gilbert Johnson Purvis to his sister Sally
"for my sister Sally Purvis, out of said estate the annual sum of one hundred & fifty dollars to be paid to her the said Sally…"
And in closing his will, Gilbert Johnson Purvis stated that he
"…do hereby nominate my friends and relatives John Purvis & William Purvis of Hinds County my executors to this my last will and testament…"
These two individuals (John & William) are Gilbert Johnson Purvis' 1st cousins and are Sons of James F. Purvis, Sr. John Purvis married Mary Parks and William Purvis married Millie Cook.
This puzzle is by no means complete. I do believe that I have most of the pieces put together properly but further research is needed. I hope to make a trip to Mississippi next month to do this research.
William H. H. Purvis and James P. J. Purvis are believed to be brother and sons of the deceased James Purvis but who was their Mother? James P. J. Purvis married Elizabeth Rose Campbell and William H. H. Purvis married Jemima Magee. In 1850, Polk County, Texas there is a Sarah Purvis, Female, (widow), age 60 [1790], born in SC in the William H. H. Purvis household. Is this the Mother of James P. J. & William H. H. Purvis?
Individuals and their relationship to others mentioned in the Will:
Gilbert Purvis, Sr.
Efficia Howell Purvis (Gilbert Wife)
James Purvis (deceased Son)
Gilbert Johnson Purvis (Son)
Sally Purvis (Daughter)
James P. J. Purvis (son of James, grandson of Gilbert) Died abt 1836
William [H. H.] Purvis (son of James, grandson of Gilbert) (inferred based on evidence, no solid proof)
James F. Purvis (Brother to Gilbert Purvis)
William Purvis (son of James Purvis, Sr.) Proven from James F. Purvis Estate Records
John Purvis (son of James Purvis, Sr.) Proven from James F. Purvis Estate Records
Nancy Purvis (married Wright Barnes, daughter of James F. Purvis) Proven - Estate Records
Betsy Purvis (married James Brock, daughter of James F. Purvis) Proven - Estate Records
You will also need the following items to research these families
Census
Efficia Howell Purvis Estate records
James F. Purvis Estate record
Gilbert Johns Purvis Will
William H. H. Purvis Land deeds – Especially the one that reads like a Will.
Various Land records from Alabama, Mississippi and Texas
If you see any errors in this article or have any further information on these families please contact me at CPurvis1 {@} gmail.com.
[1] to seize or take back (goods) under a writ of replevin
[2] 1810 U S Census, Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina, population schedule, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, enumeration district (ED) No ED, Page: 553, Household of James Purvis; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 2011); citing Family History Number: 0181419.
[3] Horry County, South Carolina, Horry County Administrator's Bond 1803-1818, Administrative Bond for John Johnston, Gilbert Purvis, admrs. of James Purvis; Bond $10,000; Moses Harrelson, Felix Powell, sec. Richard Singleton, Levi Moore, wit. , 17 July 1818, Probate Office, Conway.
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